Ephesus Jacksonville Connections
Spring 2015
Volume 2 Issue 1
Join us as we celebrate African– American
In This Issue
“What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching,
with faith and love in Christ Jesus. Guard the good deposit that was
Presidential Proclamation
3
In the Beginning
4
In Celebration
5
Before Rosa Parks
8
Rosa Parks’ “Featherlite
”Pancakes
10
In Retrospect
11
Fact for Features
14
Adventurer Spotlight
18
entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives
in us.
( 2 Timothy 1:13-14 )
A
s we celebrate Black
History Month, we
look back with great
gratitude to the African-American pioneers who made
tremendous sacrifices for us to be
blessed with the freedom we have today. While these pioneers made great strides and accomplishments, there is
still work to be done. The responsibility is ours to carry on
and complete the work that was started. In the book of
Proverbs, we are reminded to, “speak up for those who
cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are
destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of
the poor and needy” (Proverbs 31: 8-9).
This month as we recognize the accomplishments of
those who braved hostility, racism and prejudice to become inventors, civil rights leaders, astronauts and scientists. Names like Nelson Mandela, Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr, Marcus Garvey, Mae Jemison and George
Washington Carver come to mind. These are only a few
of the men and women who made their mark in history.
There are also countless other unsung heroes who have
not received recognition for their work, and we recognize
their work as well.
African-Americans within Adventism have also played
major roles in spreading the Gospel of Jesus. From
Charles Kinney, the first African-American ordained Seventh-day Adventist minister to the members of the Edgefield Junction church in Tennessee, home of the first African-American Seventh-day Adventist church, we have a
great deal to be thankful for. Let us use this month to reflect on the lessons we have learned from the past and as
an opportunity to shape our lives and the lives of others
for the future, both here on earth and in the world to
come.
Thanks to everyone involved in organizing this month’s
events. On behalf of my wife Sandra, our children; Johann, Krista and Marc, we wish you all the very best for a
successful and memorable Black History Month. Go with
God and be a blessing.
Pastor
W
fining our future. It was Marcus Garvey who once said, “A
people without the knowledge of their past history, origin
and culture is like a tree without roots.” Paul, in his letter
elcome to Ejax
to the Corinthians echoed similar words, “For we do not
Connections’
want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we exBlack History Month issue. In
perienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened bethis issue, we look back with
yond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed,
grateful hearts on the accom- we felt that we had received the sentence of death: But
plishments of African-American that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God
who raises the dead” (2 Cor. 1:8,9). This should be our
Adventist pioneers.
motivation in establishing a stronger relationship with our
Lord.
Also included in this issue is an overview of the history of
the Adventist church through African-American eyes. It is
my hope that you’ll find these articles enlightening.
History plays a major role in forming one’s identity. It allows us to see where we have been, and helps us in de-
Editor
2
Presidential Proclamation -- National African American History Month, 2015
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
For generations, the story of American progress has been shaped by the inextinguishable beliefs that change is always possible
and a brighter future lies ahead. With tremendous strength and abiding resolve, our ancestors -- some of whom were brought to
this land in chains -- have woven their resilient dignity into the fabric of our Nation and taught us that we are not trapped by the
mistakes of history. It was these truths that found expression as foot soldiers and Freedom Riders sat in and stood up, marched
and agitated for justice and equality. This audacious movement gave birth to a new era of civil and voting rights, and slowly, we
renewed our commitment to an ideal at the heart of our founding: no matter who you are, what you look like, how modest your
beginnings, or the circumstances of your birth, you deserve every opportunity to achieve your God-given potential.
As we mark National African American History Month, we celebrate giants of the civil rights movement and countless other men
and women whose names are etched in the hearts of their loved ones and the cornerstones of the country they helped to
change. We pause to reflect on our progress and our history -- not only to remember, but also to acknowledge our unfinished
work. We reject the false notion that our challenges lie only in the past, and we recommit to advancing what has been left undone.
Brave Americans did not struggle and sacrifice to secure fundamental rights for themselves and others only to see those rights
denied to their children and grandchildren. Our Nation is still racked with division and poverty. Too many children live in crumbling neighborhoods, cycling through substandard schools and being affected by daily violence in their communities. And Americans of all races have seen their wages and incomes stagnate while inequality continues to hold back hardworking families and
entire communities.
But the trajectory of our history gives us hope. Today, we stand on the shoulders of courageous individuals who endured the
thumps of billy clubs, the blasts of fire hoses, and the pain of watching dreams be deferred and denied. We honor them by investing in those around us and doing all we can to ensure every American can reach their full potential. Our country is at its best
when everyone is treated fairly and has the chance to build the future they seek for themselves and their family. This means providing the opportunity for every person in America to access a world-class education, safe and affordable housing, and the job
training that will prepare them for the careers of tomorrow.
Like the countless, quiet heroes who worked and bled far from the public eye, we know that with enough effort, empathy, and
perseverance, people who love their country can change it. Together, we can help our Nation live up to its immense promise.
This month, let us continue that unending journey toward a more just, more equal, and more perfect Union.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by
the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim February 2015 as National African American History
Month. I call upon public officials, educators, librarians, and all the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirtieth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand fifteen,
and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
BARACK OBAMA
3
,
F
ebruary is Black History
Month, and as the name
states, it’s a month-long celebration
of achievements by AfricanAmericans and a time for all Americans to reflect on the contributions
African-Americans have made to U.S.
and global history. But how did this
celebration start, and why February of
all months?
(February 14), an escaped slave who went
on to become a black abolitionists and a major civil rights leader, and President Abraham
Lincoln (February 12), who signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which abolished slavery in America's confederate states.
The response was overwhelming. The event
spread on college campuses and was widely
received.
During the following years, the celebration
became a central part of African-American
life and substantial progress was made in
The event grew out of “Negro History Week,”
bringing more Americans to appreciate the
an idea thought up by Dr. Carter G. Woodson
celebration. Cities across the country began
and other prominent African-Americans.
issuing yearly proclamations recognizing
The story begins in 1915, fifty years after the Negro History Week.
Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in
the United States. In September of that year,
Woodson and the well known minister, Jesse
E. Moorland, dissatisfied that history, ignored
America's black population, took on the challenge of incorporating black Americans into
the nation's history and started the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History
(ASNLH). The group’s focus was mainly researching and promoting achievements by
people of African descent. Woodson also
founded the group's publication, the Journal
of Negro History.
In 1925, the ASNLH’s hope of raising
awareness of African-American's contributions to history was realized when the organization announced Negro History Week. The
event was first celebrated during a week in
February 1926 to coincide with the birthdays
of two men who changed the course of African-American history: Frederick Douglass
The shift to a month-long celebration began
before Woodson’s death in 1950. As early
as the 1940s, blacks in West Virginia, a state
where Woodson often spoke, began to cele-
brate February as Negro History Month. In
Chicago, Fredrick H. Hammaurabi, started
celebrating Negro History Month in the mid1960s. Hammaurabi used his cultural center,
the House of Knowledge, to incorporate African consciousness with the study of black
history. By the late 1960s, as young blacks
became increasingly conscious of links with
Africa, public awareness and the Civil Rights
Movement, Negro History Week started to
slowly evolve into Black History Month. The
1960s had a dramatic effect on the study and
celebration of black history. Younger intellectuals prodded the ASNLH to change with
the times. They succeeded. In 1976, fifty
years after the first celebration, the Association used its influence to institutionalize the
shift from a week to a month and from Negro
history to black history. 1
President Gerald R. Ford officially recognized
Black History Month in 1976. He urged
Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor
the too-often neglected accomplishments of
black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”
Since the mid-1970s, every American president, Democrat and Republican, has issued
proclamations endorsing the Association’s
annual theme.
1. Scott, Daryl M. “History of Black History Month.”
History of Black History Month. The Association for the
Study of African American Life and History, n.d. Web.
25 Jan. 2015.
4
In 1886 Edgefield Junction, Tennessee, became the location of the first black Seventhday Adventist church. The pastor was Harry Lowe, formerly a Baptist minister. The second black Seventh-day Adventist congregation was established in Louisville, Kentucky, in
1890, with A. Barry as its pastor. The third was started in Bowling Green, Kentucky in
1891, followed by churches in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1892 (started by Charles
Kinney), and Nashville, Tennessee, in 1894.
The Allison Family
Franklin H. Bryant, a member of the Morning Star staff, was the first black Adventist to be published. Bryant, published a book of poetry called “Black Smiles” the
first book published by an African-American Seventh-day Adventist.
Franklin H. Bryant (1842 - 1930)
Mary Britton was Kentucky's first female licensed medical doctor and one of the
state's original black Adventists. Britton’s religious beliefs influenced her medical
practice where she specialized in hydrotherapy and electrotherapy. Britton was
also an outspoken social activist. Active in the post-Reconstruction movement
to improve the lives of Americans of African ancestry, she participated in an 1895
Frankfort demonstration against separate railroad coaches. Britton retired after
twenty years of practice. Her home at 545 North Limestone Street is a site of historic interest.
Mary Britton (1855-1925)
James Alexander Chiles earned his JD from the University of Michigan Law School
and was the first black to practice law in Lexington, Kentucky. By 1907, he was one
of four African American lawyers in the city. In 1910 Chiles argued in the Supreme
Court case against the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad for desegregation of railroad
coaches after he was removed by force to the Colored coach in spite of his first
class ticket from Washington D.C. to Lexington. Chiles was also an active member
of the Colored Seventh Day Adventist congregation in Lexington; he was a trustee,
deacon, and treasurer of the first church built in 1906 at the corner of Fifth and Upper streets.
James Alexander Chiles (1860-1930)
5
Edward Earl Cleveland was a pivotal civil rights advocate and church administrator. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Seventh-day Adventist
evangelists.
Edward Earl Cleveland (1921-2009)
Rosetta Douglass Sprague, daughter of the prominent emancipator Frederick Douglass, with whom Sojourner Truth occasionally shared the platform. Baptized in 1883,
Sprague held membership in Washington, D.C., and is reported to be among the first
black female converts to the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Rosetta Douglass-Sprague (1839-1906)
The Hardy family converted to Seventh-day Adventism in 1857, before the church
was officially incorporated, becoming Adventism’s first African-American church members. In addition to the family’s being the first black Seventh-day Adventists, William
Hardy is credited with being the first Black man elected to public office in Michigan,
and Eugene, William’s son, was the first black to graduate from high school in Michigan.
William J. Hardy (1823-1888)
James Kemuel Humphrey was born in the parish of St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, on March 7, 1877. In
1900, he started a career as a Baptist minister
Humphrey left Jamaica in 1901 to visit Africa. On his way there, he stopped in New York City,
where he converted to Adventism through the efforts of J.H. Carroll, a Seventh-day Adventist layman.
Humphrey was a charismatic Seventh-day Adventist minister responsible for formally initiating a
black Adventist presence in New York City, raising up numerous churches in Harlem
James K. Humphrey (1877-1952)
Humphrey parted with Adventism in 1929 because of his dissatisfaction with the racial climate in
the denomination. He wanted Blacks to be empowered economically and spiritually, so he began
to promote a self-enhancement program called the Utopia Park Benevolent Association project
(Utopia Park). At the time Utopia was in violation of Adventist church policy and at the request of
church leaders, Humphrey was stripped of his ministerial credentials.
6
Charles Kinney was the first black pastor ordained to the Seventh-day Adventist
ministry and was a pioneer in evangelism and church establishment. Kinney was
the first to articulate concerns of Blacks in the areas of race, church policy, and
organizational equity.
He pioneered the concept of the black (Regional) conference as a method of evangelizing blacks in a segregated south. Triggers included, the embarrassment he
and his congregation suffered when they were segregated at his ordination and
denied admission to Adventist institutions.
Kinney believed that black people needed to grow in three areas to reach their po-
Charles M. Kinney (1855-1951) tential: education, experience, and economic development.
Knight was a leading educator in the Southern United States and the first black woman
of any denomination to serve as a missionary in India.
Knight taught herself how to read and happened upon Adventism through mail-order
literature.
She obtained a nursing degree under the tutelage of Dr. John Harvey Kellogg at Battle
Creek College. Kellogg arranged for Knight to be a representative at the Battle Creek
General Conference in 1901. While at the GC session, Knight was impressed to go to
India as a missionary and so set off for Calcutta in later in 1901,becoming the second
black Adventist sent by the church on foreign missions (the first was James Patterson
who left for Jamaica in 1892).
Anna Knight (1874-1972)
Lewis Sheafe trailblazed black Seventh-day Adventism in Washington, D.C. and was an
important and controversial figure who fought for black equality in the first decade of the
twentieth century.
He accepted converted to Adventism after receiving health care at Battle Creek Sanitarium in 1896.
Lewis C. Sheafe (1859-1938)
Sheafe’s greatest contribution to the Adventist cause came in Washington, D.C., where
his successful evangelistic campaigns, beginning in 1902, led to the addition of approximately 200 members, both black and white, and to the formation of the denomination’s
first predominantly black urban congregation, the People’s Church in December
1903. Conflicts over racial justice, especially involving the denomination’s educational
and medical work, led to the withdrawal of the People’s Church from the denominational
connection in 1907, though the congregation remained Seventh-day Adventist in belief
and practice.
Sojourner Truth (1797-1883), the famous abolitionist, was believed to be a Seventhday Adventist - through the efforts of Uriah Smith. Born as Isabella Van Wagener
around 1797 in Ulster County, New York, she was the first woman of African ancestry
to see and know Ellen White up close. Both were frequent speakers at the Battle Creek
Sanitarium, the 4,000-seat Dime Tabernacle, and Battle Creek College.
Truth was an abolitionist and woman's rights activist who lectured with Millerites and is
believed to have accepted the Seventh-day Adventist message. She was buried in Battle Creek, Michigan, in the same graveyard in which Ellen G. White and other Adventist
pioneers rest.
Sojourner Truth (1797-1883)
7
white couple boarded the bus. The
white driver told Morgan and the
woman seated next to her with an
infant child to move. Morgan refused
and told the woman next to her not
to move as well. "I didn't do anything
wrong. I'd paid for my seat. I was sitting where I was supposed to," Morgan told Washington Post reporter
Carol Morello in 2000.1
ask passing black youths to call a local minister and have him contact
her mother. She was jailed for resisting arrest and violating Virginia's segregation law. When her mother arrived, she had to post $500 bail.
Morgan pleaded guilty to resisting
arrest and paid a $100 fine. She
pleaded not guilty to the charge of
violating Virginia's segregation law.
The Greyhound bus driver, furious at
Morgan’s refusal drove to the Middlesex County town of Saluda and
parked the bus outside the jail,
where a sheriff's deputy boarded the
bus and handed Morgan a warrant
for her arrest. In another defiant
move, Morgan ripped up the warrant
and threw it out the window. According to Morgan, the officer then tried
to grab her arm to remove her from
the bus. “He touched me…that’s
On a hot July morning in 1944, Irene when I kicked him in a very bad
Morgan boarded a Greyhound bus in place. He hobbled off, and another
Gloucester County, Virginia, on her
one came on. He was trying to put
way to a doctor's appointment in
his hands on me to get me off. I was
Baltimore, Maryland. Morgan was
going to bite him, but he was dirty,
recovering from a recent miscarriage. so I clawed him instead. I ripped his
She found an empty seat four rows
shirt. We were both pulling at each
from the back in the "Colored Secother. He said he’d use his nightstick.
tion,” the section under Virginia's
I said, ‘We’ll whip each other.’”1
segregation laws that was designated
After being dragged off the bus and
for black passengers.1 A half hour
placed in the Middlesex County jail,
into her a five-hour trip, a young
Morgan shouted through the bars to
At her
trial in
Middlesex Circuit
Court, her
attorney,
the late
Spottswood
Robinson
III, argued
that segregation laws unfairly impeded interstate commerce. Robinson, who later
became chief judge of the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the District made a
calculated decision not to argue that
the laws were unfair under the fourteenth Amendment guarantee of
equal protection because racial segregation was the law of the land. The
strategy didn’t work, Morgan was
E
leven years before Rosa
Parks refused to surrender
her seat to a white passenger on a
bus in Montgomery, Alabama, a little
known, young Adventist woman in
Virginia had refused to give up her
seat to a white couple on a Greyhound bus in Gloucester County, Virginia. A decision that would later
lead to a Supreme Court ruling striking down Jim Crow segregation in
interstate transportation.
(Continued on page 9)
8
(Continued from page 8)
found guilty and fined $10.
Two lawyers from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People (NAACP), Thurgood Marshall,
who would become the first AfricanAmerican to serve on the Supreme
Court and William H. Hastie, the first
African-American judge on a federal
appeals court , appealed her conviction
all the way to the Supreme Court. On
June 3, 1946, in Irene Morgan v. Commonwealth of Virginia, the Supreme
Court In a 6-1 decision ruled that segregation in interstate travel was unconstitutional as "an undue burden on commerce."
Morgan’s defiance and court victory
paved the way for others like Rosa
Parks. Morgan was never interested in
fame. She never asked for, neither did
she seek public recognition.
In 2001, President William Jefferson
(c)Afro-American
Clinton recognized her with the Presidential Citizens Medal, the second highest civilian honor that a President can
bestow. Prior to that, in 1995 she appeared in a public television documentary about her case called, You Don't
Have To Ride Jim Crow. In 2001,
Gloucester, Virginia, honored her during
the town's 350th anniversary celebration. She earned her bachelor's degree
from St. John's University at age 68 and
her master's from Queen's College at 73
years of age.
Irene Morgan Kirkaldy died on August
10, 2007 at the age of 90.
1. Lamb, Yvonne. “Irene M. Kirkaldy; Case
Spurred Freedom Rides.” In the News.
Washington Post, 13Aug, 2007. Web. 25
Jan. 2015.
9
2
On Wednesday, February 4, the Library of Congress released a collection of manuscripts and photos
from Rosa Parks’ personal collection. It included handwritten notes,
mementos, and letters that had
been in warehouses in New York
and Michigan for nearly a decade
since her death in 2005. There’s
even a recipe for her “Featherlight”
pancakes that we have included below
Sift together:
tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon sugar
Mix:
1 egg
1 1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup peanut butter
1 tablespoon oil
Combine with dry ingredients. Cook
at 275 degrees on griddle.
1 cup flour
10
11
12
13
Population
Source: Population Estimates
74.5 million
<http://www.census.gov/newsroom/
press-releases/2014/cb14-118.html>
The projected black, either alone or in
combination, population of the United
States (including those of more than one
race) for July 1, 2060. On that date, according to the projection, blacks would
constitute 17.9 percent of the nation’s
total population.
The black population in New York,
which led all states as of July 1, 2013.
Texas had the largest numeric increase
since 2012 (78,000). The District of Columbia had the highest percentage of
blacks (51.0 percent), followed by Mississippi (38.1 percent).
<http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/C21001B>
1.3 million
Cook County, Ill. (Chicago) had the largest black population of any county in
2013 (1.3 million), and Harris, Texas
(Houston) had the largest numeric increase since 2012 (18,000). Holmes,
Miss., was the county with the highest
Source: Population projections Table 10
percentage of blacks in the nation (83.2
percent).
<http://www.census.gov/population/
projections/data/national/2014/
Source: Population Estimates
summarytables.html>
3.7 million
Source: 2013 American Community Survey
Education
83.7%
The percentage of blacks 25 and over
with a high school diploma or higher in
2013.
Source: 2013 American Community Survey
<http://www.census.gov/newsroom/
press-releases/2014/cb14-118.html>
<http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/S0201//
popgroup~004>
Serving Our Nation
19.3%
2.2 million
Number of black military veterans in the
United States in 2013.
The percentage of blacks 25 and over
who had a bachelor’s degree or higher
in 2013.
(Continued on page 15)
14
(Continued from page 14)
Source: 2013 American Community Survey
<http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/S0201//
popgroup~004>
1.7 million
Among blacks 25 and over, the number
who had an advanced degree in 2013.
<http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/ p60-249.pdf>
p20-568.pdf>
84.1%
66.2%
Percent of blacks who voted in the 2012
presidential election, higher than the
64.1 percent of non-Hispanic whites who
did so. This marks the first time that
blacks have voted at a higher rate than
whites since the Census Bureau started
publishing statistics on voting by the eligible citizen population in 1996.
Percentage of blacks that were covered
by health insurance during all or part of
2013. Nationally, 86.6 percent of all
races were covered by health insurance.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Health
Insurance Coverage in the United
States: 2013
<http://www.census.gov/content/dam/
Source: 2013 American Community Sur- Source: The Diversifying Electorate —
Census/library/publications/2014/demo/
vey
Voting Rates by Race and Hispanic Ori- p60-250.pd
gin 2012
<http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/B15002B>
<http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/
Families and Children
3.0 million
Number of blacks enrolled in undergraduate college in 2013 compared with
2.6 million in 2008, a 17.5 percent increase.
p20-568.pdf>
61.8%
Income, Poverty and
Health Insurance
Among households with a black householder, the percentage that contained a
family in 2013. There were 9.8 million
black family households.
$34,598
Source: 2013 American Community SurThe annual median income of black
vey
households in 2013, compared with the
nation at $51,939.
<http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/B14007B>
<http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/08_1YR/B14007B>
Voting
17.8 million
The number of blacks who voted in the
2012 presidential election. In comparison to the 2008 election, about 1.7 million additional black voters reported going to the polls in 2012.
Source: The Diversifying Electorate —
Voting Rates by Race and Hispanic Origin 2012
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Income,
Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage
in the United States: 2013
<http://www.census.gov/content/dam/
Census/library/publications/2014/demo/
p60-249.pdf>
27.2%
Poverty rate in 2013 for blacks, while
nationally it was 14.5 percent.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Income,
Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage
in the United States: 2013
<http://www.census.gov/content/dam/
Census/library/publications/2014/demo/
Source: 2013 Current Population Survey, Families and Living Arrangements,
Table HH-1 and F1
<http://www.census.gov/hhes/families/
data/cps2013H.html>
1.3 million
Number of black grandparents who lived
with their own grandchildren younger
than 18 in 2013. Of this number, 45.2
percent were also responsible for their
care.
Source: 2013 American Community Survey
<http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/B10051B>
(Continued on page 16)
15
(Continued from page 15)
Jobs
blacks 16 and over who worked in management, business, science and arts occupations, while 36.3 percent of the total
civilian employed population worked in
these occupations.
vey
Source: 2013 American Community Sur-
<http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/S0201>
28.1%
The percentage of civilian employed
<http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/
table/1.0/en/ACS/13_1YR/S0201//
popgroup~004>
William Still, better known as "The Father of the Underground Railroad" was born October
7, 1821 in Burlington County, New Jersey. He was a black preacher and businessman,
who accepted the Millerite teachings in 1841and later experienced the Great Disappointment.
Still helped hundreds escape to freedom. Interviewing each person and keeping careful
records, including biographies and the destination for each slave. He kept his records carefully hidden because he knew the accounts would be critical in aiding the reunion of family
members who had been separated under slavery.
William Still (1821-1902)
Still worked with other Underground Railroad agents operating in the South and in many
counties in southern Pennsylvania. His network to freedom also included agents in New
Jersey, New York, New England and Canada. Conductor Harriet Tubman traveled through
his office with fellow passengers on several occasions during the 1850s.
After the Civil War, Still published an account of the Underground Railroad, The Underground Railroad Records, based on the secret notes he kept. It went through three editions
and in 1876 was displayed at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. The book is now
available as a free e-text on Project Gutenberg.
In 1934 Eva G. Strother became the first African American Master Comrade (Master
Guide) to be invested.
Eva G. Strother (1906–1992)
William Ellis Foy was a black Millerite preacher who received several visions in
1842, years prior to those received by Hazen Foss and Ellen Harmon. In 1845 he
published a 24-page tract based on his visions. A teenage Ellen Gould Harmon
(White) went to hear Foy relate his visions several times in her hometown of Portland, Maine, later stating that "it was remarkable testimonies he bore." After the
Great Disappointment Foy spent four decades in active ministry.
William E. Foy (c. 1818-1893)
16
Louis B. Reynolds, We Have Tomorrow (Washington D.C.: RHPA, 1984)
17
18
Last Year, I gave a few tips on saving. Now that
we are at the start of a new year, the time when
most make resolutions, I thought it would be
ideal to revisit these tips.
semi-annual car insurance, car registration,
monthly haircuts, birthday gifts etc. and
divide it into 52 weeks or, into 12 months if
your budget is a monthly budget. That way
you know what amount you should put
away each pay period into a separate ac-
Whether you are saving up for college, a welldeserved exotic vacation, a
new car, or for something
more exciting like your wedding or your first home, you
must have a plan to reach
your goal. Saving money
does not have to be hard. If
you are disciplined enough to
stick to the following tips, you
will get there easily. Happy
Saving!
1.
2.
3.
Get a job – In order to
save regularly it is not
possible without a regular
source of income. So
update your resume,
(there are several templates on the internet) and get a job. Whether you’re studying
or in between jobs, even a part-time job
helps with bills and will get you closer to
your goal.
count. When these bills do come along,
you should not have to take money out of
your savings account. After all, you really
don’t want to be sacrificing that hard-saved
vacation money to pay for bills.
Open a savings account – you must have 4.
a dedicated savings account for whatever
you are saving up for. There are many offers for online savings account, which can
only be accessed online. They are fairly
easy to open and devoting one to a
planned purchase helps hold your money
as it grows so it doesn't leak out through
your overall spending account. Create a
weekly or monthly automatic savings plan
5.
so a fix amount is credited automatically.
Before you know it there will a healthy sum.
It is such a great incentive to watch your
savings balance grow this will motivate you
to avoid making small purchases along the
way.
Do a budget— Most people cringe when
they hear the word budget but doing a
budget can actually be exciting. A budget is
simply your money plan that tells you how
much money is coming in, how those funds
are allocated and what are your estimated
expenses (groceries, rent/lodging, car expenses, insurance, etc). Most people fall
into the trap of just taking into account their
weekly expenses, when the 6-month car
insurance comes along, they’re stressing
as to where they’ll find the money to pay for
it. The key to avoiding this dilemma is to
calculate all non-weekly expenses such as
6.
Young people, live at home as long as
you can—How much would you pay in rent
if you were not living with your parents?
Deposit half of what you would pay for rent
on a monthly basis in your savings account. Be considerate to your parents;
contribute towards the bills and groceries.
You will be surprised at the end of the year;
you will have a sizeable portion.
Bargain hunt- Shop for items that are discounted; buy clothing when it is on sale,
clothes almost always go on sale; use coupons. You will be surprised how much you
will save. Before you buy something, think
about how long you have to work in order
to actually buy it. Is it really worth you
spending your hard earned dollars?
Don’t try to keep up with the Joneses—
Never try to maintain a lifestyle you simply
can’t afford. A major obstacle on the path
to acquiring wealth is living like you are rich
before you are.
Be prudent in your spending! Be specific with
your goals; be deliberate in reaching them.
Lastly, learn to separate wants from needs and
live within your means.
19
Bill Knott. Adventist Review, May 26, 2005
20
Douglass, Frederick. My Bondage and My Freedom. New York: Miller, Orton & Co, 1857.
21
Conference Ordains Pranitha Fielder, A First for Indian Adventist Women
The Potomac Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
enth-day Adventist denomination. She was born in Inordained Pranitha Fielder on Saturday, December 13 dia to Jaya and Jasmine Pilli. The family moved to
at the Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church, making her Maryland when Pranitha was a child.
the first ordained Indian-American woman in the Sev-
Huntsville First Seventh-day Adventist Church Offers Sunday Services
The Huntsville First Seventh-day Adventist Church in
Huntsville, Alabama has started offering a Sunday
morning service. It’s a casual, come-as-you-are wor-
ship service, the event aims to attract "unchurched"
community members.
Loma Linda University Health Marketing Director Arrested
Tammy Wren Violet Veach, the Executive Director
for Marketing at Loma Linda University Health, has
been arrested for allegedly stealing approximately
$360,000 in Apple iPads and Apple MacBooks over
the course of her employment at Loma Linda, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.
22
23
Pastoral Visits
If you or a loved one would like a visit from the pastor or an elder,
please contact Walter James at 904-768-0085. Thank you for your
help in this matter.
Newsletter Team
Contact Us
Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church
2750 W. Edgewood Ave.
Jacksonville, FL. 32209
904-768-0085
Editor
Sandra Brown
[email protected]
Managing Editor
Orville Arscott
Visit us on the web at: EphesusSdaJax.org
Assistant Editors
Denise Jackson
Pat Goffe
Reporters
Kacy’Anne Williams
Lydia Hanson
Photographers
Orville Arscott
Kevin Jackson
Publisher
Kevin Jackson
Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church
Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church
2750 W. Edgewood Ave.
Jacksonville, FL. 32209
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